'Can come to the ruling side': Fadnavis offers Uddhav Thackeray, says BJP not going to be in opposition 'at least till 2029'

NEW DELHI: Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said that Shiv Sena (UBT) Uddhav Thackeray "can come to the ruling side in a different way," giving a new offer to the former ally UBT. While addressing the Maharashtra assembly, the CM said that till 2029, there is no scope for the BJP to come to the opposition side."At least till 2029, there is no scope for us to come there (opposition). Uddhav Ji can think about the scope of coming to this side (ruling party) and that can be thought about in a different way, but there is absolutely no scope left for us to come there (opposition)," Fadnavis said.The Shiv Sena and BJP's alliance bloomed till 2014. But, their 25-year partnership hit a rough patch during the 2014 Maharashtra Assembly elections due to a seat-sharing dispute, prompting both to contest separately. Fadnavis may have made a seemingly light-hearted remark, but its political undertone runs deep — especially at a time when Uddhav Thackeray has intensified his attacks on the BJP and the Shinde-led government over the three-language policy, and when speculation about a patch-up between the estranged Thackeray cousins is gaining traction.The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), a past ally of the BJP, has yet to clarify its electoral stance. Speculation has been mounting, especially after July 5, when Raj and Uddhav Thackeray shared a stage for the first time in two decades. The rare show of unity came during a joint celebration of the Maharashtra government's decision to reverse two controversial orders mandating Hindi as a third language from Class 1 in state schools. Back in April, Raj Thackeray had already fuelled talk of a possible thaw, calling their past disagreements “trivial” and stressing that uniting for the cause of the Marathi manoos shouldn’t be difficult. Uddhav Thackeray echoed a similar tone shortly after, saying he was open to reconciliation—so long as it didn’t include those acting against Maharashtra’s interests.